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The Beatles in Los Angeles: Backbeat and RAIN

Updated on November 18, 2014

Andrew Knott as John Lennon, Daniel Healy as Paul McCartney in "Backbeat" | Photo by Nobby Clark, courtesy of the Ahmanson Theatre

Fans of The Beatles have always had dozens of reasons to visit Los Angeles, home to more Beatles-related landmarks than any other city in the U.S. Legendary Beatles concerts took place at the Hollywood Bowl (two performances were compiled for The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl live album) and Dodger Stadium, where The Beatles performed their penultimate concert on August 28, 1966. In February 2012, Sir Paul McCartney became the final Beatle to receive his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, joining his bandmates’ stars just outside the entrance to the Capitol Records building on Vine Street. Every member of the Fab Four has owned a home in LA, and diehards can even make a pilgrimage to the site of Elvis Presley’s former mansion at 565 Perugia Way in Bel-Air, where the King met the lads from Liverpool for the first and only time in the summer of 1965.

In 2013, fans from near and far can experience two acclaimed Beatles musicals in Los Angeles: Backbeat at the Ahmanson Theatre in Downtown, and RAIN at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood.

Backbeat at Ahmanson Theatre (Jan. 30 - Mar. 1)

The cast of "Backbeat" | Photo courtesy of Ahmanson Theatre

Directed by five-time Tony Award nominee David Leveaux, Backbeat is making its American premiere at the Ahmanson Theatre in Downtown LA before moving on to Broadway. Backbeat is based on the 1994 film of the same name, and tells the story of the early days of The Beatles in Hamburg, Germany, where they performed rock 'n' roll covers every night. For Beatles fans, Backbeat is an unforgettable trip to the early 1960s, when John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Pete Best (the drummer before Ringo Starr joined the group) and Stuart Sutcliffe (the band's original bassist) began honing what would become the world-famous Beatles sound. Backbeat features many of the all-time rock 'n' roll classics that the Beatles cut their teeth on: Money, Long Tall Sally, Twist and Shout, Good Golly Miss Molly, Please Mr. Postman, Rock 'n' Roll Music and more.

RAIN at Pantages Theatre (May 7-12, 2013)

Abbey Road | Photo courtesy of RAIN - A Tribute to the Beatles

RAIN, the internationally-acclaimed Beatles concert, returns by popular demand to the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood. For more than two decades, RAIN has distinguished itself by delivering a perfect, note-for-note performance that the Associated Press describes as “the next best thing to seeing The Beatles!” Drawing from a repertoire of over 200 Beatles songs, RAIN performs the full range of The Beatles' discography live onstage, from the early hits to later classics, including I Want To Hold Your Hand, Hard Day’s Night, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Let It Be, Come Together, Hey Jude and more. The show includes some of the most complex and challenging songs that The Beatles themselves recorded in the studio but never performed live for an audience.

Please note that the dates for this engagement were originally scheduled for January 22-27, 2013. Any Season Ticket Holders who previously purchased tickets for this show will be re-ticketed for the new engagement.